President also says Nato is no longer obsolete following his secretary of states visit to Moscow

Donald Trump has said that US relations with Russia may be at an all-time low and proclaimed a new-found faith in Nato, suggesting the alliance was no longer obsolete.

The US presidents remarks at the White House followed a two-hour session in Moscow between his secretary of state, Rex Tillerson, and Vladimir Putin, which failed to resolve any of the deep differences between the two nations on Syria, Ukraine, or Moscows interference in the 2016 US election.

Were not getting along with Russia at all, Trump told, adding we may be at an all-time low. He avoided any direct criticism of Putin, but compared the relations with Russia unfavourably to the one he had cultivated with China since the visit of Xi Jinping last week.

Russia, Trump noted, had vetoed a US-backed resolution on Syria at the UN security council while China had abstained, adding that he was not surprised by Beijings posture connoting he had negotiated it with Xi.

In the latest of a series of dramatic foreign policy reversals in recent days, Trump dropped an accusation he had recurred throughout his presidential campaign, telling the Wall Street Journal that the Chinese were not currency manipulators.

The presidents remarks confirmed a significant shift in his positions since taking office virtually three months ago, cooling towards Russia and reaffirming support for Nato.

A day after approving Natos latest expansion with the accession of Montenegro, information sources of fury in Moscow, Trump use a joint appearance with the alliances secretary general, Jens Stoltenberg, to distance himself from his past denigration of Nato, while claiming credit for improving its performance.

I complained about that a long time ago and they made a change, and now they do fight terrorism, the president told. I said it was obsolete. Its no longer obsolete.

Tillersons two-hour audience with Putin in the Kremlin led to the removal of the most immediate threat of escalation, as Putin reaffirmed the maintenance of a hotline between the two countries militaries to avoid midair crashes between their aircraft operating in Syrian airspace.

Americas top diplomat said the two countries had agreed to create a working group to find solutions to smaller problems so that they could then concentrate on bigger issues.

But as he sat alongside his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, at a press conference, it was clear that fundamental differences between the US and Russia on Syria and beyond remained very much in place.

The perspective from the US be compatible with facts we have that are conclusive that the chemical assault was planned and directed and executed by Syrian regime forces-out, Tillerson told, adding that the reign of the Assad family is coming to an objective and Russia perhaps has the best means of helping the Assad regime recognise this reality.

Russia afterward vetoed a UN security resolution put forward by the US, the UK and France calling for chemical weapons inspectors to be allowed to investigate chemical weapons attacks and for the Syrian regime to hand over us air force flight logs and other operational details from 4 April, the day of the Khan Sheikhun assault. It was Russias eighth veto on a resolution putting pressure on the Assad regime. China abstained, while 10 council members voted for it.

Lavrov disagreed with him on every point. As to Syrias political future, Lavrov told Russia was not making a bet on person or persons or the other, including Assad, but said the fate of Syria should be decided by Syrians themselves.

Lavrov went on to say the US and its friends had failed to learn from the past and still clung to their ambitions to topple leaders they ensure as dictators, a policy that had led to tragedy elsewhere.

Weve already gone through such experiments based on the need to overthrow some despot or authoritarian leader, he told. I dont know of any positive examples of removing a dictator.

Tillerson was the first member of the Trump administration to gratify Putin. The session followed a day of public uncertainty over whether it would take place, although US officials had been confident that it would eventually happen.

Putins spokesman had previously been coy about whether the president would even speak with Tillerson, telling no such session was on his schedule. Putin waited until after the talks with Lavrov to invite Tillerson to the Kremlin.

The two men had friendly ties when Tillerson was in his previous job as head of the ExxonMobil oil company and Putin had bestowed the Russian Order of Friendship on the Texan.

Unusually for the Russian president, he did not keep Tillerson waiting at the Kremlin before starting the meeting, which lasted two hours.

A former US official involved in relations with Russia over Syria told Russia had exaggerated its public outrage over the US missile strike, which it may well have welcomed as a way of constraining Assad, over whom Moscow has limited control.

How are they going to stop him[ use chemical weapons ]? You would have to be ready to walk away, the former official told, speaking on condition of anonymity.

If Putin strolls away, how does he justify the casualties Russia has suffered if youre not on the side of the angels, opposing terrorists. Its hard enough in a republic to admit you were wrong. Once you are in and your reputation is tied up with your client, then the customer, Assad, has leveraging over Putin.

As Tillerson was fulfilling Putin and Lavrov in Moscow, representatives of the two countries exchanged slights at the UN security council before Russia wielded its veto.

To my colleagues from Russia you are isolating yourselves from the international community every time one of Assads airplanes fell another barrel bomb on civilians and every time Assad tries to starve another community to death, the US envoy, Nikki Haley, told.

It is long past time for Russia to stop covering for Assad … and to push for peace.

The Russian deputy envoy to the UN, Vladimir Safronkov, called the US salvo of 59 cruise missiles which hit the regime base in Shayrat a provocation which was able to offer encouragement to those seeking a military solution to the conflict.

Even in the bearpit of the security council, however, the US and Russian envoys pulled their punches, compared with the raw exchanges of recent days.

Haley focused the majority of members of her remarks at Iran, which she called Assads chief accomplice. Safronkov reserved his fiercest dislike for the UK envoy, Matthew Rycroft, who had said that UK scientists ascertained that sarin had been used in the Khan Sheikhun attack and called on Russia to cut ties with Assad, who Rycroft told was bringing Moscow merely disgrace and humiliation.

In a remarkable showdown in the council chamber, Safronkov rounded on Rycroft. Youre frightened, he hollered at the British envoy. Your dream has slipped away, because were going to work with the United States. Youre afraid of this. Youre doing everything you can to sabotage this teamwork Look at me! Dont turn your eyes away! Why are you seeming away?